Hi Carolyn,
I had a strange experience on Mother's Day. My daughter couldn't come because she was on duty, so she sent me a beautiful bouquet of flowers via "Interflora". I put it in a large vase in the living room and we went to have lunch at my in-laws (my poor mother-in-law always insists on cooking for her children and their families on Mother's Day).
I ate a little bit of seafood paella -actually only a litte rice, 1 shrimp and 3 clams (I'm serious!) and a small portion of marzipan filled puff pastry for desert.

When we got home that evening the house had a strong, penetratingly sweet smell, as if someone had emptied a bottle of perfume all over the place. I sat down to watch TV and almost immediately my heart started beating like crazy and I had difficulty breathing. I honestly thought that either the shrimps or the clams were to blame ... they're sometimes drenched in chemical preservatives. It got better when I went off to bed, but when I got up in the morning it started again, I felt on the verge of a heart attack, so I went out on the balcony to get some fresh air. I got better instantly. Then I realized that it always got worse near the flowers...I finally realized that it was two beautiful lillies that were giving off that strong aroma and literally "taking my breath away"!! It had never happened to me before, I have never been allergic to anything. Anyway...the lillies ended up in the garbage can and the other flowers were pardoned.